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“Your Highness!” The shout came from Edouard as he hurried up with his face a mess of blackened ash. He stopped in his tracks when he noticed me, sans ribbon. “You!”
Cal set his hands on my shoulder and smiled at his soldier. “That will have to do for another time, Commander. Millie here has something she must do.”
I didn’t wait for any more revelations but turned and hurried into the trees toward Ben. Werewolves darted to and fro, some carrying buckets and others putting the fires out by throwing dirt on the flames.
One of the larger ones leapt into my path and blocked my way. Their yellow eyes studied me with a familiar glint. “Miss Lucas.”
I leaned forward and narrowed my eyes at the beast. “Deor?”
The werewolf nodded. “Have you come to soothe the beast?”
I looked past him at the scaly rear end of his friend. “I’m going to try.”
Deor turned his back to me and lay on his stomach. “Allow me to help.”
I climbed aboard and Deor took off like a shot. He skirted around Ben’s right side but far enough away to avoid the flaming limbs that fell from the burning trees. We soon emerged from the woods just ahead of Ben and my heart skipped a beat.
Ben wasn’t quite as large as the source of his curse, but he towered over us as we faced off against his fury. I sat up on Deor’s back and waved my hands above my head. “Ben! Ben! Over here!”
Be careful what you wish for, as the old saying goes, and I regretted my shouts when Ben whipped his head around to face us. His red eyes glowed with fury and he opened his gaping maw to reveal a pit of hellfire in his gullet.
“Deor!” I shouted as I grabbed onto his fur.
“Already on it!” he yelled back as he took off.
Ben spat out a column of fire that followed us across a quarter of the clearing. He was only checked by the fact that his neck couldn’t twist around any further. Deor dodged into the trees and ducked behind a particularly large specimen. His chest moved up and down beneath me and my own pulse was going at light speed.
Deor twisted his head around to catch my eye. “What now?”
I tightened my grip on his fur and lifted my chin. “Can you get me on his back?”
His eyes widened. “Pardon?”
I leaned down and met his surprised gaze with my stern one. “Can you get me onto his back?”
He pursed his long lips but turned to face ahead. “I can try but I hope you know what you’re doing.”
Deor sprinted back toward the clearing, but this time he went around to the rear of the great beast. My ride shot out into the clearing and leapt over the swishing tail to land neatly on Ben’s broad ass. I scurried down, trying to avoid the nearly suffocating heat, and climbed up Ben’s back.
Ben twisted his head around and his eyes fell on me. Deor clawed at Ben’s scales and managed to loosen a few, catching Ben’s attention.
I slipped on the smooth scales and crashed onto my stomach. His glossy back meant I slid backward for a few feet before my hands managed to catch on a few larger scales. I used the flakes to clamber up his back to his thick neck. Ben leaned in and snapped his jaws at me.
I sat up and my hand began to glow. “Ben, behave!”
He flew at me for a mouthful of Millie. My right hand began to glow and I slapped him on the cheek.Hard.
Ben’s head snapped to one side and the glow from my hand flowed over his head. The light slipped into his eyes which blinked and became the familiar dazzling blue. He shook his head and turned his head to and fro.
I raised my hand and narrowed my eyes at him. “Are you back with us, Ben, or do you need another good slap?”
Ben swept his eyes over the area and sadness slipped into them. His sorrowful voice echoed in my head. “I did this?”
My ire, too, was quelled and I dropped my hand against my leg. “Yeah, but it’s partly my fault. You were trying to find me and me not being able to control my powers got me captured.”
“If you two are finished blaming yourselves,” Deor called from the ground where he had dropped. “You might wish to change yourself back before my brethren finish with their work and get close enough to see your true form.”
I slid off Ben’s back and turned to watch him shrink to his human form. Everything was normal down to his nakedness, his transformation having completely obliterated all of his clothes. I blushed as I looked over his muscled body.
